SATURDAY’S MID-AMERICAN CONFERENCE FOOTBALL GAMES

Iowa State 26, Akron 13

AMES, IOWA

Zeb Noland threw for 233 yards and a touchdown, David Montgomery had 107 yards rushing and a score and Iowa State held off Akron. Connor Assalley added four field goals for the Cyclones (1-2), who put forth an underwhelming performance ahead of a brutal stretch in the Big 12. Iowa State broke a 10-10 tie on a 1-yard TD run by Montgomery just before halftime. Assalley added field goals of 29 and 33 yards, and the Cyclones stopped Akron on downs with 2:07 left. Kato Thomas had 153 yards passing and a touchdown and a pick for the Zips (2-1). They gained just 244 yards and didn’t reach the red zone.

Mississippi 38, Kent State 17

OXFORD, MISS.

Jordan Ta’amu threw for 442 yards, two touchdowns and ran for another score to lead Mississippi over Kent State. Ole Miss (3-1) had some good moments, especially in the second half, but struggled to shake the malaise from last week’s 62-7 loss to No. 1 Alabama. The Rebels and Golden Flashes went into halftime tied at 7. The game had two delays for lightning, a 53-minute stoppage at the beginning of the second half and another 1-hour, 43-minute delay in the fourth quarter. Kent State (1-3) pulled within 21-17 midway through the third quarter on Woody Barrett’s 2-yard touchdown run, but couldn’t get closer. Ole Miss responded with two lengthy offensive drives that added 10 points and gave the Rebels a comfortable advantage.

Cincinnati 34, Ohio 30

CINCINNATI

Desmond Ridder led Cincinnati on a 92-yard fourth-quarter drive to take the lead and Ohio was stopped at the Bearcats’ 1-yard line with 52 seconds left on James Wiggins’ interception. Michael Warren’s 3-yard run brought the Bearcats all the way back from a three-touchdown deficit for Cincinnati’s fourth straight win to start the season. Nathan Rourke finished with 96 yards, including a 37-yard run on Ohio’s final possession. He passed for 178 yards.

Toledo 63, Nevada 44

TOLEDO

Mitchell Guadagni passed for four touchdowns and ran for two more and Toledo beat Nevada. Guadagni was 15 of 24 passing for 211 yards and rushed for 131 yards on 15 carries. Cody Thompson caught three touchdown passes, one from Desmond Phillips, who took a handoff from Guadagni. Diontae Johnson added two touchdowns, one on a catch and another on a 99-yard kickoff return. The Rockets’ special teams also scored on a 9-yard return by Reggie Gilliam on a muffed punt. Freshman Toa Tua rushed for 170 yards on 15 carries and three scores, including a 66-yarder, for the Wolf Pack (2-2). Ty Gangi threw for 320 yards and a score and also ran for a TD.

Western Michigan 34, Georgia State 15

ATLANTA

Jamauri Bogan and LeVante Bellamy combined for almost 250 yards rushing as Western Michigan rolled over Georgia State. Bogan carried 15 times, racking up 126 yards and one touchdown. Bellamy had 21 carries for 121 yards. Jayden Reed pulled in seven passes for 101 yards and a score. Jon Wassink threw for 234 yards and three TDs for Western Michigan (2-2). The Bronco defenders forced three fumbles, recovering two, and had one interception to stop Georgia State. Dan Ellington threw for 285 yards for Georgia State (1-3).

Central Michigan 17, Maine 5

MOUNT PLEASANT, MICH.

Tommy Lazzaro had a touchdown pass and ran for a score in his first career start to lead Central Michigan. Lazzaro ran it in from 5 yards out in the first quarter and connected with JaCorey Sullivan for a 5-yard TD in the fourth that put Central Michigan (1-3) up two scores. The Black Bears (2-1) scored on Kenny Doak’s 36-yard field goal in the third quarter and a fourth-quarter safety when Richard Carr blocked a punt that rolled out of the CMU end zone.

Florida State 27, Northern Illinois 19

TALLAHASSEE, FLA.

Deondre Francois threw for a season-high 352 yards and two touchdown passes as Florida State used an efficient first-half offense en route to a win over Northern Illinois. Francois had his seventh career 300-yard day, completing 23 of 31 passes. The junior had a 78-yard touchdown pass to Tamorrion Terry and an 8-yard TD pass to Jacques Patrick. Despite using a fourth different starting lineup on the offensive line, the Seminoles generated a season-high 473 yards against the Huskies. Florida State was at its best in the first half, generating four scoring drives as the Seminoles took a 20-7 lead.

Western Kentucky 28, Ball State 20

MUNCIE, IND.

Steven Duncan came off the Western Kentucky bench to throw two second-half touchdown passes and engineer the Hilltoppers’ come-from-behind win at Ball State. Duncan came on in the second half and gave Western Kentucky an immediate lift as the Hilltoppers drove for a touchdown to take a 14-13 lead on a 4-yard pass to Mik’Quan Deane with 2:53 left in the third quarter. Riley Neal found Corey Lacanaria with a 6-yard touchdown pass to put the Cardinals up, 20-14 with 8:39 to play, but Duncan engineered two scores in the final five minutes to earn the win.

Miami (Ohio) 38, Bowling Green 23

BOWLING GREEN

Alonzo Smith ran for 164 of the RedHawks’ season-high 289 yards rushing and Miami (Ohio) defeated Bowling Green in a Mid-America Conference opener. Smith’s 34-yard run put the senior over 2,000 yards rushing for his career and set Miami (1-3, 1-0) up at the Falcons 2-yard line before Gus Ragland ran over from the 1 two plays later for a 17-3 lead. Ragland tossed a 6-yard pass to Andrew Homer with 33 seconds left in the first half to go up 24-3. Ragland was an efficient 10-of-15 passing for 119 yards and two scores. Bowling Green’s Jarret Doege threw 45 times, completing 30, for 237 yards and two scores. Grant Loy added a TD pass on the game’s final play.

Associated Press